Commenting on the pension reforms being set out today, Head of Policy at the Adam Smith Institute, Ben Southwood, said:

Letting people decide what to do with their own money is almost always a good idea, and this reform is no exception.

It's only a small move, but giving people more flexibility over how they spend the money they've saved through their life is positive—a step forward when so many pension reforms over past decades have been steps backward.

The system is a complicated mess, and anything we can do to make it clearer to people how they will be able to use their savings when they retire is a good move.

Why would people have saved up over such a long time only to blow it all? If we trust people to spend their salary we should trust them to spend their savings.

Notes to editors:

For further comments or to arrange an interview, contact Kate Andrews, Communications Manager, at kate@adamsmith.org / 07584 778207.

The Adam Smith Institute is an independent libertarian think tank based in London. It advocates classically liberal public policies to create a richer, freer world.